ANKARA, Turkey (AP) – Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday unveiled an ambitious 10-year space program for his country that includes missions to the moon, sends Turkish astronauts into space and develops internationally viable satellite systems.
Erdogan announced the program, seen as part of his vision to give Turkey a greater regional and global role, during a live television special effects event.
He said Turkey plans to make “a first contact with the moon” in 2023, when the country celebrates the centenary of the founding of the Turkish republic. The first phase of the mission would be “through international cooperation,” while the second phase would use Turkish missiles, Erdogan said.
“Our primary and most important goal for our national space program is the contact of the Republic, in its 100th year, with the moon,” said the Turkish leader. “God willing, we’ll go to the moon.”
Erdogan also stated Turkey’s goal to send Turkish citizens into space with international cooperation, to work with other countries to build a spaceport and to create a “global brand” in satellite technology.
“I hope this roadmap, which will take Turkey to the top of the global space race, will come to life successfully,” he said.
Turkey established the Turkish Space Agency, or TUA, in 2018 with the aim of joining the handful of other countries with space programs.
Critics have questioned the government’s decision to devote vast sums of money to that cause at a time when the country’s economy is struggling. But advocates say a space program will create jobs for researchers and likely reduce the brain drain of emigrating scientists.
Erdogan has not provided details of how Turkey plans to achieve its goals. Last month, he and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk spoke by phone and discussed space technology partnerships with Turkish companies.
Meanwhile, a metal monolith that mysteriously appeared and disappeared in a field in southeastern Turkey turned out to be a publicity gimmick for the event.
The 3 meter high (about 10 feet high) metal plate with the inscription “Look at the sky, you’ll see the moon” written in an ancient Turkish script was found by a farmer in Sanliurfa province on Friday. The monolith was located near the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Gobekli Tepe, which is home to megalithic structures dating back to the 10th century BC, thousands of years before Stonehenge.
The structure was reported missing on Tuesday morning, adding to the mystery.
An image of the monolith was later projected on the screen when Erdogan said, “I now present to you Turkey’s 10-year vision, strategy and goals and I say, ‘Look at the sky, you will see the moon.’ ”
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Robert Badendieck contributed from Istanbul